The "Broken Homes" of the "Rivers of London" Quiz

Answer: Sons of Weyland

DCI Nightingale has a gentleman's cane, which is also his wizard's staff. Even when there were more practitioners most wizards didn't see the need to possess one. Even fewer felt the need to know how to construct them. Thomas Nightingale is an exception to this rule, having sought out and learning the secrets from the Manchester based "Sons of Weyland".

In the world we inhabit there exists a Neolithic long barrow in Oxfordshire named "Wayland's Smithy". The character "Wayland the Smith" comes from Scandinavian and/or Germanic mythology. I have to presume that this is the inspiration for the name "Sons of Weyland" in this novel.

Answer: Architect

Erik Stromberg is dead, he died about 30 years prior to the events in the tale. It is not the story of his life that is important, it is the legacy that he has left that affects this story. Erik was clearly not a fan of the "building houses that people might want to live in" school of architecture. Except of course for the house that he built for himself.

Answer: National Trust

In the story, West Hill House is a National Trust property on Highgate Hill. Naturally this was nothing like the houses he designed for the proletariat to live in. This is a charge that has been levelled at many designers of post-war council housing in the UK. In the story, this building had been burgled, although the National Trust didn't know what had been stolen. This, plus a dead safe-cracker with a guidebook to the property attracted the attention of PC Grant.

Back in the real world, although there is a large house at the top of the hill, it is Georgian. It appears nothing like the building described in "Broken Homes". The author's notes at the back of the book provide more information as to which aspects of the various buildings and architecture are real and which are figments of the imagination.

Answer: German White Library

This is discussed by Professor Postmartin when he explains about the stolen book that Peter has identified. A book of magic, as opposed to a magical book, with the (translated) title "On the Fundamentals that Underlie the Practise of Magic".

Professor Postmartin explains that the library was held in Cologne. At the time of the French Revolution the city was occupied by France. The revolution closed down all the universities.
Subsequently the entire library was smuggled out to Weimar. It then was renamed "Deutsche Akademie der Hohere Einsichten zu Weimar".

Answer: Department for Complex and Unspecified Matters

Despite the historical attitude of the Folly to ignore the existence of magic in other countries, it is conceded that other organisations and traditions exist. Most European traditions are thought to have died out after World War 2 in the same way as those of the UK. American, Chinese and Russian traditions are mentioned, but all kept to themselves and didn't share their secrets. On the other hand, Nightingale notes that the British weren't offering to share their own secrets either.

Answer: Latin

The invitation is from the "Lord and Lady of the River", better known as "Old Father Thames" and "Mama Thames", also known as the God and Goddess of the River Thames. The hand written invitation is sent to the Folly, inviting them to attend and to keep the peace.

The "Spring Court" is to be held on the south bank of the River Thames at a place called "Bernie Spain Gardens". This can be found on maps of London, located between the Blackfriars and Waterloo bridges. They are named after Bernadette Spain, a local activist who as part of the Coin Street Action Group campaigned against an office development here.

Answer: It's a slippery slope

The Goblin market is a floating market, in the sense that the venue keeps changing. It is described as "a combination mobile social club, shabeen and car boot sale for London's supernatural community".

This one is held in Kentish Town. Following the description in the book it is possible to match it up with a specific building visible on various mapping software packages.

The wrong answers are combinations of other titles in the "Rivers of London" series.

Answer: Night Witch

The villain in question has many aliases, but she is known at this point as Varenka Debroslova, who served in the Soviet Army during World War 2. Night Witches were trained as special combat troops, magical combat that is. Eventually she ended up in the UK. Like Thomas Nightingale, she stopped aging in the 1960s.

The "Pale Lady" died in the Trocadero towards the end of "Moon Over Soho". The first Faceless Man was found dead at the end of "Whispers Underground". The second Faceless Man, believed to have been a student of the first Faceless Man, hired Varenka as nurse, minder and guard of the first Faceless Man.

In the real world "Night witches" was the nickname given by German troops to an all female Soviet bomber unit in World War 2.

Answer: London plane

A London plane tree seems suitable for a book about London. Sky has an interesting life cycle. In Spring she is childlike, throughout the rest of the year her outlook matures, until she spends Winter snuggled up with a book. Or she did until her death.

Her death is avenged, probably courtesy of her friend Nicky. Nicky is the goddess of the River Neckinger, another of the rivers in London that have been mostly covered over and/or reused as part of the sewer system.

Answer: Block of flats

The building in question is a block of flats, whose architect was Eric Stromberg. It was a post-war concrete monstrosity, situated in the Elephant and Castle area of London. Naturally this was listed as being of "special architectural and historic interest". The reasoning for the faceless Man's demolition is to harvest magic from the building.

In previous books we have had the Royal Opera House burn down and an Oxford Street underground station platform collapsing. What the subsequent books hold in store remains to be seen.